Memphis Grizzlies: Forecasting the rest of December — can they continue to defy the odds?
The Memphis Grizzlies have been playing phenomenally well despite the current circumstances of being shorthanded. The injury bug has hit the team in a major way.
First, it was reserve guard Sam Merrill, who went down with an injury Nov. 18 at the LA Clippers, then superstar Ja Morant went down with an injury against Atlanta Nov. 26. Rookie Ziaire Williams went down with an injury during the Dec. 6 game at Miami.
Veteran Kyle Anderson (back soreness) and the dynamic back-up Brandon Clarke (right knee soreness) have been banged-up lately and have missed games sporadically.
To compound things, Morant and now Dillon Brooks have been required to enter the NBA’s health and safety protocols due to circumstances related to Covid-19.
A few things have fallen in the Grizzlies favor: they’ve been playing incredibly well on defense, they’re getting excellent productivity out of the bench and the team has seen Jaren Jackson, Jr. and Desmond Bane elevate their games in a big way.
The team keeps getting curve balls thrown at them, but they have largely responded by going out on the court and earning big win after big win.
We’re forecasting the remaining games in the month of December for the Grizzlies to get a sense of how things could shake out.
Dec. 11, Memphis Grizzlies vs Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets, to the surprise of everyone— including some of their own players— are enjoying a seven-game winning streak.
A team full of rookies, young players, and role players have defeated the likes of Brooklyn and Chicago during its run that began Nov. 24. This team started the season 1-16 and has since gone 7-0, giving them an overall record of 8-16 on the season.
The Grizzlies will have a difficult challenge facing such a hot team that’s playing with great confidence. The Rockets are playing unselfish basketball, evident by four different players being the leading scorer during this seven-game stretch of wins.
Houston will be without 2021 second overall pick Jalen Green and Kevin Porter, Jr. The Grizz have a good chance to get this win at home, especially with Brooks coming back from being in the NBA’s Health & Safety Protocols.